Guide to Supporting the Modern Teleworker Series: Choose Ideal Candidates

Successful teleworking hinges largely on the individuals in the program. To find employees who would benefit from teleworking, managers should consider employees that are already responsible for computer-based tasks – those which need long hours concentrating on advanced processes, such as writing, programming or designing.

Other great teleworking candidates include sales-oriented roles where individuals spend hours on the phone and just need access to basic applications like Microsoft Office, Google Apps or CRM systems. On the other hand, tasks that need in-office communication or collaboration may be hurt by a teleworking option.

Personalities also play a big role in the success of teleworking. Managers should be keenly aware of an individual’s temperament and social nature when offering a teleworking option. More extroverted individuals may feel disconnected, bored or unengaged in their work environment if there is no one around. Introverts, on the other hand, may feel more productive with less distractions with a remote work option – and tools like Vonage’s call forwarding and straight-to-voicemail may be a great fit.

Final Tip: Before implementing a full-scale program, you can choose a group of employees to test the program. The teleworking resource should be careful to choose individuals who will excel in a teleworker position, can communicate needed changes and will still be productive if the untried policy experiences hiccups.

Next up in our “Guide to Supporting the Modern Teleworker” series: how to establish clear guidelines for your teleworking program.